Conventional machines for manufacturing specialty ice cream cakes and pies generally comprise an elongate frame or framework supporting a plurality of ingredient dispensing stations arranged in a sequence or row along the frame. A conveyor delivers products between the respective stations for dispensing selected ingredients and forming and decorating the specialty ice cream products. The ingredient dispensing stations include ice cream dispensers for dispensing and forming ice cream layers and ice cream decorations.
Such ice cream specialty manufacturing machines are exemplified by the Model OK-120 Ice Cream Cake Machine manufactured by OTEM, address 20151 Via Gallarate 228, Milano, Italy, and available from NORMECA Ice Cream Division of OTEM, Via Pian Scairolo, P.O. Box 18, CH.6911 Pambio, Noranco (Lugano) Svizzera (Switzerland). Noranco
In the conventional ice cream cake and pie manufacturing machines, the ingredient dispensers and in particular the ice cream dispensers at respective dispensing stations of the machine frame are fixed volume displacement dispensers. Variation in the volumetric delivery at any particular station is accomplished by mechanical adjustments at the particular station. Any variations permitted in the height, movement, or other effects of the dispenser are similarly accomplished by mechanical alterations at the particular station. There is no provision for operator interaction with the operational parameters of the respective dispensing stations except by such time consuming mechanical arrangements.
A disadvantage of the conventional ice cream cake and pie manufacturing machines is that substantial down time is required between manufacturing runs for different types of decorative ice cream cakes and pies. There is no opportunity for rapid adjustment of operational parameters at the respective dispensing stations for changeover between product runs or design of new products. Nor is there any centralized operator control of the decorative product design parameters at the dispensing stations. Even with the mechanical alterations available at the individual stations, the range of parameter variations for achieving different specialty and decorative effects in delivering ingredients is limited.